Boeing to Jump into Android Powered Mobile Business

By Pradeep Chandrasekaran on 04/12/2012 11:26 PST

The airplane manufacturer Boeing is in the process of developing a mobile phone that will make use of Google’s Android OS. The phone which is to be launched in the later parts of 2012 will be pitted against other manufacturers that offer highly secure communication devices. Brian Palma, VP of the company’s secure infrastructure group said that Boeing is near the end of the development cycle and will be getting ready to launch what he called, “The Boeing Phone.”

He also said that the current market of highly secure communication devices offer products using proprietary software and hardware and often the pricing for them can go anywhere from $15,000 to $20,000. Palma said that although Boeing would be aiming for a lower price point, it would not go as low as the mass-market point of pricing. Boeing sees a larger business trend because at one point in time, employees used to go to work to take advantage of perks like information technology.

Nowadays however, Palma claims that it is the other way around because the technology is either in users’ pockets or at home. With regards to the selection of the Android OS, Palma said that the users of these high-end phones want the same ability to use famous applications while knowing that their business communications are secure since they are aiming to cater for the emergency responder, defense and intelligence sides of the market. For now, that is all the information that was provided about the “Boeing Phone” but Palma did not confirm whether or not the upcoming device would carry the same name and would not reveal any of Boeing’s partners for the project.